Bookstand



W. F. LAMAR Oct. 15, 1940.

BOOKSTAND Filed Aug. 16, 1939 l W l laag SWW

lPatented Oct. 15, 1940 p UNITED BOOKSTAND Y William P. Lamar, Atlanta, Ga.

Application August 16, 1939, Serial No. 290,504

2 Claims.

10 October 5, 1935, which has now matured into Patent No. 2,186,300, granted January 9, 1940.

The general object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved stand of the type described.

A more particular object of the invention is the provision of novel and improved means for adjusting the height of the rack `from the floor and also laterally from the supporting standard to permit its being employed in numerous ways, as, for example, by an orchestra conductor standing,` a reader or musician sitting, or an invalid lying in` bed.

In its preferred embodiment, the invention further contemplates the provision of supporting w25 means for the rack whereby it may be offset from the vertical standard and, although carrying oo nsiderable weight, will be prevented from bending the standard or setting up excessive strains therein.

Other objects and features of novelty will be ,apparent from the following specification when read in connection with the accompanying drawing in which certain embodiments of my invention are illustrated by way of example.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a View in elevation of a stand embodying the principles of my invention, a portion of the lower end being shown in vertical sec-` tion;

Figure 2 is a fragmentaryview in elevation of a modified form of stand in which is incorporated another type of raising means;

Figures 3 and 4 are horizontal sectional views of this alternative embodiment taken on lines 3-3 and 4 4 respectively of Figure 2; and

Figur-e 5 is a fragmentary View in elevation of an alternative arrangement for reinforcing the tripod legs.

n Figure 1 ofthe drawing, the`rack upon 3U which the printed `matter or. other articles are held is indicatedY generally by the reference numeral It andis supported uponthe end of a hori- Zonta-l arm II extending from a vertical standard i2, this standard being supported upon a -35 tripod base I3. The racky III and. its connections (Cl. .ZM- 108) with the arm II are the same as illustrated and described in my copending application referred to above. l l

In order to adjust the position of the rack III for a variety of uses, means are `provided for extending the stand in a vertical direction to alter its height from the floor or supporting surface, and other means are provided for rotating the rack It! in a vertical plane and for locking it in any of a plurality of inclined positions. These means will now be described in detail.

The standard I2 comprises a lower tubular section I5 around which is dispose-d a ring I6 which is slidable upon the member I5 and p-rovided with means (not shown) for clamping it rigidly in selected positions thereon. Ears I'I are provided on the sleeve I6 to which are pivoted the upper ends of the legs I8', three o f these legs being indicated in the drawing as spaced 120 apart. It is obvious that additional legs could be provided, but three is, of course, the minimum number possible for independently supporting the standard. Braces I9 are pivoted to an intermediate portion of the legs and are also pivotally connected to the ears of a ring or sleeve 2| carried by the lower end of the tubular member I5. It will be seen that by adjusting the sleeve or ring I6 vertically ,upon the standard, the legs may be spread to any desired extent or the tripod base folded against the sides of the standard.

In Figure 5 the legs I8 are provided at their lo-werlnost ends with connecting strips 24 which are pivoted as at 25 to the ends of the legs and are provided intermediate their length with a locking rule joint 25. These braces 24 effectively reinforce the base of the standard and permit additional weight to be supported by the rack.

An alternative reinforcing feature is illustrated in Figure 1 and comprises a relatively large disc or plate 28 which is keyed at the lower end of the threaded rod 29 which is screwed into the open threaded interior of the tubular member I5, thus providing a vertical adjustment for the disc which will be pressed firmly against the floor when heavy weights are to be carried by the stand,

The upper end of the tubular member i5 is also interiorly threaded for the reception of the lower threaded end of the extension member t. The threads 3l on this member preferably have a pitch of one inch, for a fairly rapid extension of the telescoping standard I2. Into the upper end of the rod 39 there is inserted the narrowed shank 32 of the bracket 33 which has a laterally extend- "STATES rATENT omer ing transversely flattened arm 35. Upon the arm 35 there is adjustably disposed a connecting element or rider 36 which is provided with a, rectangular slot for the close reception of this arm and also an upward extension provided with an opening for the reception of the flat vertically disposed cross Karm II. To provide a proper line contact for the arm I I the upper slot of the member 36 is formed with a relatively sharp fulcrum edge 31. The member 36 is provided with holes which are adapted to be brought into registry with certain of the series of holes formed in the arms 35 and Il, in order to adjust the fulcrum of the cross arm I I various distances from the axis of the standard I2. The rearwardly projecting short end of the arm II is provided with a series of notches 39 within which the-upper end of the tie chain member 4l] may be received.

rIhe lower end of chain 40 is connected to the projecting hook 4I provided on the ring I6 to which the legs I8 are connected. The hook is adapted to enter any of the links of the chain in adjusting the latter for the height of the stand.

If the horizontal arm II were pivoted directly above the top of the vertical standard I2, the forces acting on the standard would tend to bend it in a right hand or clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 1. However, by fulcruming the arm at a point offset toward the left, as in Figures l and 2, the top of the standard I2 is constrained to bend towiard the left and to tend to offset the general bowingr of the standard I2 in the opposite direction especially when an exceptionally heavy weight is placed upon the rack I6. This, together with the slight pull toward the left by the tie member 40, tends to maintain the standard I2 in a vertical position and adds to the strength of the entire support.

In order to further insure the stability of the stand, means are provided for locking the arm I I in positions directly above each one of the legs I 8. This means comprises set screws 45 which are disposed about the tubular member I at intervals corresponding to the intervals between the legs I8, these intervals being 120 in the embodiment illustrated. Holes or recesses 46 are provided in the threaded portion of the shaft or rod 39 for the reception of these set screws 45.

An alternative means for raising the rack Ill by the extension of the standard I2 is illustrated in Figures 2, 3, and 4 of the drawing. In this embodiment the tubular member I5 of the standard is extended vertically so that it is several inches higher than the corresponding member I5 in the previously described embodiment. Upon this member I5 there is slidably disposed an elongated sleeve 56 carrying upon its ends the rings 42 having lugs or ears 4I which are connected with the notched short end of the arm I I by means of the chains 40. To the upper end of the elongated sleeve member 50 is pinned the shank 32 of the bracket 33 which provides an 'adjustable fulcrurn for the arm I I in the same and also the lower oppositely directed squared studs 54. Upon the trunnions 53 are pivoted the arms of a yoke 55 which forms part of the operating lever 56, the handle of which is slightly offset as at 51 to avoid one of the tie members 40 during operation.

Upon the sleeve 50 there is provided a ratchet rack 58 having the teeth 59 Which are spaced apart a distance corresponding to the length of the separate steps by which the rack is to be raised. The yoke 55 is provided with a pawl 66 which is pivoted thereto as at 6I. A stop member such as, for example, the ledge 62 is provided for preventing the pawl 60 from moving downwardly too far. A lug 63 is provided on the pawl for manually holding it in raised position during certain adjustments.

A retaining member 65 is provided having a handle 66 and the side arms 6'! which are adapted to embrace the standard. The arms are provided with elongated slots 68 of a width permitting them to snugly receive the squared projections 54. The bight portion of the member 65 is provided with a rigid retaining pawl 'I6 which is resiliently urged into engagement with the teeth 59 of the ratchet rack 58 Iby means of the springs 'Il having their ends secured to projections 'i2 on the member 65 and to the ends of the squared lugs 54 as at 13.

The operation of this raising means will be readily apparent. The retaining pawl I6 supports the upper portion of the stand by engagement with one of the teeth 59 as shown in Figure 4. The handle 56 in its raised position permits the dog or pawl 60 to engage beneath one of the teeth 59 and when the handle 55 is de-v pressed the dog will raise the upper portion of the stand to the distance of approximately the length of one of the teeth 59. During this lifting movement the member 55 will slide laterally as the inclined face of the adjacent tooth 59 forces the retaining pawl 'I0 outward against the inuence of the springs 1I. At the end of this movement the pawl 'I0 will .snap beneath the tooth 59 and the handle 56 when raised again will permit the dog 66 to descend for engagement with the next tooth. When the rack is to be lowered th-e dog 6i) is released from engagement with any of the teeth 59 by manipulation of the projection 63 and the retaining member 65 is retracted manually and the upper portion of the stand lowered to the desired position.

It will be realized from the foregoing description that an exceedingly adaptable stand has been provided by the present invention which is susceptible of many uses and adjustable in many ways for the convenience of the reader.

The same principles embodied in the stand which has been described may be applied to a derrick or jib crane constructed in a very similar manner to the support disclosed herein.

It is understood that various changes and modifications may be made in the embodiments illustrated and described herein Without departing from the scope of my invention as delined by the following claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. In a stand of the class described, in combination, an extensible vertical standard comprising telescoping upper and lower members, a supporting base for said lower member, said upper member including a sleeve carrying a ratchet rack and adapted to receive the lower member, trunnions on said lower member, an operating lever pivoted upon -said trunnions and provided 'with a pavvl adapted to successively engage and lift the teeth of said ratchet rack, squared lugs also projecting from said lower member and received Within elongated slots in a transversely movable retaining member, a retaining dog on said lastnamed member, and spring means for urging said dog into engagement With the teeth of said rack.

2. In stand of the class described, in combination, extensible vertical standard compris ing telescoping upper and lower members, a supporting base for said lower member, said upper member including an elongated tubular sleeve carrying a ratchet rack and adapted to receive the lowermember, said sleeve being provided 'With an elongated slot in'diametrcally opposite sides thereof, trunnions on said lower member projecting through said slots, a bifurcated operating lever pivoted upon said trunnions, embracing said sleeve, and provided with a paWl adapted to successively engage and lift the teeth of said ratchet rack, squared lugs also projecting from said lower member through said slots in the sleeve, and received Within elongated slots in a transversely movable retaining member, a retaining dog on said last named memberg and spring means for urging said dog into engagement With' the teeth of said rack,

WILLIAM P. LAMAR. 

